Run Away (TMNT)
by Caspian101
Summary: Based-TMNTmovie'07. Ch1-Mikey sets off a soda explosion in the living room, Leo makes him clean up his mess, Raph and Leo get in a fight. Ch2-Raph hears Leo and Donnie talking and thinks they mean him, Raph then runs away and gets stuck in a blizzard. Ch3-Leo finds Raph before his brother is claimmed by death. (Please overlook spelling errors and I suck at Summaries, just read it!)
1. Ch 1 'The Fight'

Raphael leaned on the railing of the porch, looking out at the clouds in the sky. He was more relaxed than he had been for a long time. He breathed in the crispy air of winter. He still didn't like the idea of moving away from New York for a whole month, but Master Splinter had ordered it and, of course, Leo did not argue with their father.

Even though Raph did not like the idea of moving away from the city for a month, he had to admit that the country side was beautiful, even in winter. They were living in April's camping home. It was a nice two story cabin, even room for the four mutant turtles and their Sensei to have some space from one another. It was far up in the mountains, but sense it was winter, little wildlife had been seen. Mikey had scared off a deer that had wondered into the front yard the first week. Donnie had told their youngest brother to be quiet when wild animals were around so that they would not get scared and run off.

Raph then looked over his shoulder as the door opened and then the screen door creaked as it was opened.

Leonardo, the eldest of the four, and the leader of their little team, walked out to stand beside Raph. The red masked turtle turned his gaze back to the wilderness for a second, and then glanced at Leo out of the corner of his eye.

"You seem quiet." Raph commented, realizing his brother was being quite silent.

Leo looked at him and offered him a small smile. "Just enjoying the silence sense Mikey is asleep."

"Ah, the spaz has finally settled down?" Raph asked. Michelangelo had been crazier than a chipmunk on a sugar rush this morning, having been allowed to drink Mt. Dew by a not so awake and alert Donatello.

"Yes, once I and Donnie got him relaxed, he was out like a light bulb. I wonder how long he really slept last night."

"Not long, I mean, it's Mikey we are talking about here." Raph said with a sly smile. He then let out a small huff. "He probably didn't even blink once you made him go to his own room." Raph commented. The first night they got here, Mikey had been in his room, sleeping so soundly that anyone could have thought him dead. It had been in the middle of the night that Mikey's screaming had woken the whole household up. They had all hurried to their little brother's room, only to turn on the light and realize all it had been was a baby fruit bat. But sense Mikey had read so many magazines and comics on 'vampire bats' and how all bats sucked blood, the orange masked turtle had freaked out like a grizzly bear was in his room. Leo had been the only one to take pity on Mikey, while Raph and Donnie were beyond annoyed at the stupid freak out. Leo took so much pity on Mikey, that he had let Mikey sleep in his room every night sense then. It was only Mikey's constant turning and kicking that had forced Leo to make his brother go back to his own room almost every night.

Leo rolled his eyes at Raph's comment and chuckled. "All I have to say is that he needs to stop reading and watching those monster movies and comics." Leo said.

"You're telling me." Raph said with a small laugh.

Just then a huge explosion from inside the house made both brothers turn around, and draw their weapons.

Both exchanged shocked glances before racing back into the house to find the living room raining in soda-pop.

"Michelangelo!" Donnie bellowed from his hiding spot from behind the couch. Mikey must have woken up and made a soda bomb or soda fountain, or a mix of the two, as it looked like to Raphael.

"Whelp, Leo. It's all yours." Raph said, backing up, his hands up in mock surrender.

Leo glared at him for a second and then made his way through the shower of soda to where the soda sat on a coffee table and taking a rag, covered the top of the 2 liter. Once it stopped completely, he turned and stormed over to another coffee table and stopped, folding his arms over his chest.

"Get out from under there right now, Mikey." Leo said in an irritated tone… At first nothing happened, then two light blue eyes appeared and then slowly a green head, wearing an orange mask and then the rest of Michelangelo appeared as he crawled out from his hiding place. When he stood up, he barely came up to Leo's chest. Mikey was the youngest out of the four, and the smallest, but he was tiny compared to Leo, sense the blue masked turtle had grown a lot over the last year…

"H…Hi L…Leo." Mikey said in a small voice, blinking up at his eldest brother.

"Don't 'hi' me Michelangelo." Leo said through gritted teeth. "You're in a ton of trouble, and you know it." Leo scolded. "Why did you do this? What was the point, other than to test our patients?"

"I was just having a little fun…" Mikey said with a low whimper, looking up at Leo with wild, scared eyes.

"This is not fun, Mikey. This is just making a huge mess and annoying your older brothers." Leo said.

"That and probably ruining my laptop in the middle of talking to a client!"

Raph jumped a little, he had not heard Donnie come up behind him, but as he looked around, he seen the purple masked turtle standing only inches behind him, holding up a silver laptop, covered in grape soda, which had been the type of soda Mikey had let off.

Even though this was a serious situation, Raphael could hardly keep from burst out laughing… Donnie was covered in soda pop and looked like a drowned cat. His mask strings were sticking to his right shoulder and he looked beyond mad. Raph loved it when Donnie got mad, because then Donnie's eyes twitched and it was so hilarious.

Mikey looked down at his feet, ashamed. "I'm sorry everyone… I didn't think it would explode like that. Yes, I knew it would explode some, but not like that…"

"Mikey, when you take a soda that is beside the heater and start to shake it up like crazy, what do you think it is going to do? All that Carbon Dioxide comes racing to the top to get free. How do you think volcanoes erupt? It is all the same, gas released from a volcanic explosion is—"

"Ok! That is enough of Science class!" Raph said, cutting off his nerdy brother.

Donnie glared at Raph for a second, then turned and mumbled something about getting cleaned up and trying to save his laptop and most likely his job.

Raph rolled his eyes as Donatello walked off and looked back at Leo and Mikey.

Leo turned his attention back to Mikey and sighed. "You will clean this all up, and then go up to your room and stay there until I come up and tell you that you are allowed to come out." Leo ordered.

Mikey flinched as if Leo had hit him, which Raph knew Leo would never do, but then the young turtle nods. "Ok…"

He then turns and walks into the kitchen and returns with a rag and some soapy water in a small pot and starts to work on cleaning the living room.

Leo stood beside Raph as they watched their young brother clean up the mess he had made. Soon Mikey approached Leo slowly.

"I'm done..." He said.

Leo nodded and took the rag and pot and nodded to the stairs. "Up to your bedroom, now." He said and Mikey went without a word. Only when the sound of Mikey's door closing, did Leo take the rag and pot back to the kitchen and then he walked back out and leaned against the wall and sunk down against it. Sitting down, he bowed his head and covered his face with his hands.

Raph raised a brow at Leo and then sighed, leaning against the wall as well, but stayed standing. "Man. Mikey is so bored that he has reduced to exploding overheated 2 liters." He said as he looked at the ceiling.

After a second, Leo removed his hands from his face and looked up at Raph with narrowed eyes. "And what do you mean by that, Raph?" He asked in a slight warning tone.

"You know what I mean Leo." Raph said, not taking his eyes off the ceiling.

There was silence. Then Raph heard Leo stand up and out of the corner of his eye, seen his older brother turn to him, arms crossed over his chest and his eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Don't even start about that again, Raphael. You know Master Splinter wanted this. That he wanted to get us away from the city and all the crimes there and just relax." Leo said.

Raph just growled deep in his throat. "I know, I know. But you could have fought back a bit, or is that too hard to ask from Master Splinter Jr.?"

More silence…

Raph glanced at Leo to see he was not looking at him and had turned his back on Raph and was starting to walk away.

_Oh no. I'm not letting him get away that easily!_ Raph thought and turned to the retreating back of his brother. "Oh, I forgot! Jungle Boy likes the wilderness more then he likes his home and family!"

That hit a nerve. Raph knew that the second he had said that it would.

Leo stopped dead in his tracks and after a minute or two; he turned to look at Raph with rage reflecting in his dark blue eyes. "You didn't just go there…"

"Yep, I did." Raph said.

After a second, Leo let out a deep growl and moved swiftly back over to Raph, he only stopped when he was face to face with the red masked turtle.

"I thought I told you to drop that a long time ago!" Leo's voice was low, but full of boiling rage. "Now _drop it_!" He snarled and then turned his back on Raph, going to leave.

"How can I drop it even you left your family for almost two years?! It's like you never cared about us, and I wonder if you ever did! You seem to care more about your 'missions' and 'training' then you ever did for us!" Raph growled.

There was absolute silence. Neither moved, Raph was even shocked about what he had just said and tried to fix his mistake… "Leo, I—"

_**SMACK!**_

Raph staggered back, shocked beyond his wits… The side of his face stung like crazy and his eyes watered at the sudden blow. The blow had been so sudden, harsh and unsuspected that Raph had fallen against the night stand beside the couch. There was a crash as the glass stand fell to the ground and shattered. Raph was cut and bleeding from the glass, but he just kneeled in the wreckage… Leo had back handed him! He had smacked him!

Raph stared up at his brother in shock, never had Leo done anything like this, he had never raised a threatening hand to his brothers before, well, not counting the fight Leo and Raph had gotten into that one horrible night on one of Raph's night Watcher shifts..

Leo glared down at Raph, there was no hint of shock, or remorse. Leo had meant it, he had, had full control of his actions!

"Don't ever say anything like that ever again, Raphael!" Leo yelled in rage.

Raph was to shocked to even speak. He watched as Leo turned and walked to the stairs and climbed them, not even glancing back.


	2. Ch 2 'In The Hands Of Fate'

Soon as Leo disappeared, Donnie came racing down and kneeled by Raph.  
"Are you ok?!" Donnie asked, shock reflected in his voice. "I don't know what got into Leo! What did you say to him to make him that angry?"

Raphael didn't answer, just looked down. His shock was being replaced with rage and hurt. He knew he should not have said what he did, but to have Leo smack him…

He then realized that Donnie was still looking at him with a mixture of fear and curiosity. He didn't want to answer any questions at the moment. He staggered to his feet and shoved Donnie away when his younger brother tried to help him. "I can do it myself!" He snapped. He then shoved past Donnie and Mikey and stormed up the stairs. He could feel both gazes of his younger brothers watching him until he reached the top of the stairs and then turned the corner, walking towards his room. He stopped for a second at Leo's door, he thought he could hear his brother's cursing and muttering, but it stopped when Raph stopped in front of the door. For a second, Raph stood there, and then he moved on down the hall.

When he reached his room, he opened the door and then walked in and slammed it closed with as much force as he could master at the moment. He then walked over to his bed and collapsed on the mattress. The bed gave a horrible lurch and creak as his weight fell on it, but Raph didn't care, he just lay there, staring at the ceiling.

Before he knew what was happening, silent tears had started to run down the side of his face as he lay there in utter silence. He held back a sniffle.

After about an hour, he heard a door open farther off and then footsteps. He held his breath and moved to see the light coming in from the hall into his room was shadowed by someone. The sword shields on the back of the shadow told him who it was.

He then heard a gentle rapping on his door and a voice.

"Raph, are you in there?" Leo voice said from the other side of the door.

"Go away!" Raph snarled, managing to hide the quivers and shaking of his voice that would give away that he was teary. What was wrong with him?! He was not a child! His brothers would think him a stupid baby for crying over something like this! Maybe he was just a stupid baby, a stubborn child who cried over the stupidest things…

There was the sound of a sigh and then the shadow disappeared as Leo walked back down the hall, and from the sound of it, went downstairs.

Raph sat there for a second, then he collapsed on the bed once again, sobbing now. He was nothing but a stupid, stubborn child and Leo had all the right to slap him.

It was only when it was pitch black outside did Raph get up. He must have been in his room for a good few hours. He was sure his brothers were fast asleep by now, having forgotten about the whole incident.

_Not shocking._ Raph thought to himself before opening the door and making his way down the hall. When he reached the stairs though, he stopped hearing voices below.

When he looked around the corner, he saw Leo and Donnie talking at the bottom of the stairs, both brothers sat on the bottom stair. Leo had his face in his hands once again and Donnie was patting his older brother's back, no doubt trying to comfort him.

Raph didn't have to strain hard to hear what they were saying.

"I wish he would just leave. He is just causing our family to fall apart! Because of him, we have to hide out in the mountains in the middle of winter just in order to stay out of a bunch of unwanted fights because he is always starting fights! He is a burden on our family, and I wish I could just make him leave us alone!" Leo said in a low growling voice.

"I know, Leo. I know, it's really annoying and I know how much stress he puts on you. Specially sense all you want to do is protect us." Donnie said, trying to sooth his brother.

Raph stood there, frozen on the spot. Leo thought him a burden? Both Donnie and Leo wanted him gone? He took in a silent breath, trying to hold back the sudden wave of new tears. Hurt mingled with rage and shock as he stood there. He then turned and raced down the hall, not caring if he made noise or not. He thought he heard footsteps on the stairs and wondered if Donnie and Leo were coming after him…

His suspicions were confirmed when he heard Leo's voice call out his name as he slammed his door shut and locked it. He only had seconds to find a way out. But where?! He heard an urgent rapping on his door and a yell from outside.

"Raph, open up! We need to talk!" Leo said as he rapped on the door.

"No!" Raph yelled and then turned and that is when his eyes fell on his window seal. He rushed over and tried to undo the lock, but it would not budge. He turned to see if he could find something to help him open the window. That is when his eyes fell on the small night stand. After a quick rebate, he grabbed it and threw it at the window.

There was a thunderous smash and then thuds as the stand fell down the roof and then onto the ground.

He heard the rapping on the door turn into pounding as Leo's voice came again.

"Raphael, open this door at once!"

Raph didn't answer, instead he grabbed his saises that were laying on his bed and tucked them in his belt and then glanced back as he heard Leo's voice a third time.

"Raphael, if you don't open this door right this instant, I will break it down! I will give you until three!"

Raph turned and gulped…

"1!"

Should he just open the door and let Leo explain? No! Leo had explained his feelings for Raph enough on the stairs. There was no need to explain anymore...

"2!"

But what if he had heard wrong? What if it was not him that Leo had been talking about? But the pieces fit. His temper was ripping the family apart. He was always running head long into the heart of danger and starting fights all the time. There was no doubt that it had been him that Leo and Donnie had been talking about.

"3!"

Raph made his final choice as the door broke down from Leo's force and Raph jumped out the broken window. He had not thought of ice or that sense it was in the dead of winter, that the roof would be frozen with ice. But it was, and he slipped on the thick layer of ice. He landed awkwardly on the ground and let out a low yell of pain as his left ankle gave a horrible _**snap**_!

He tried to ignore the burning pain and pulled himself to his feet and raced towards the trees, as he got to their cover, he glanced back at the yells from the house.

His bedroom light was on and shown perfectly through the broken window. Leo stood in front of his window, calling for him to come back.

His and his brother's eyes met and then Raph pulled his gaze away and with that, he raced into the frozen wilderness…

Raph limped along, he was freezing cold and his ankle was hurting horribly. The wind had picked up and he could just barely see that more angry clouds were above him. He needed to find shelter. But where? He would not go back to the house. No, not again would he burden his family with his horrible temper.

As Raph looked for shelter, the wind kept picking up until it was so strong that Raph's hurt ankle could take no more and he collapsed under a huge pine-tree. The low hanging branches and needles provided some protection from the wind, but not much. Raph slowly leaned over to take a look at his ankle. It was swollen and black and blue. Maybe just a sprain? Yes, it had to be sprain; it could not be broken, because if it was, he would not be able to walk on it at all. It would be fine, or at least he hoped it would.

He then leaned back and closed his eyes, wanting nothing more than to drop off the sleep, but the throbbing of his ankle and the biting cold made it almost imposable to do such a thing as sleep. So Raph sat there, cold, hungry, and in pain as the weather around him roared its rage to the world.

Raph didn't know how long he had been there when the first snowflakes fell, but he knew that they quickly turned into a raging blizzard.

A blizzard and he was stuck out in the open with nothing but a tree to protect him from the snow. Soon the blizzard was so bad that he could not even see his swollen ankle anymore. He thought the cold would help with the pain, but instead of helping, it just made it worse. Soon he could barely take any more pain and he fell to the ground, curling up and trying to protect himself from the cold as much as he could. He closed his eyes and let the blizzard claim him as its.

After a while, darkness set in and he lost all senses of the world around him…

_**He had never thought of death, not even once. But now, as he watched his body from a distance, he knew he would have wanted to die 100 different ways than this. To die in a blizzard after he had ran away was not a way Raphael would have put on a list of 'If How I could Choose how to die, I would choose;'. But it seemed to be his fate. After a second, he blinked and the blackness set in again…**_


	3. Ch 3 'Lost and Found'

Raph woke to silence; he was cold and just moving made his body scream in protest. He sighed, so he was not dead, that would soon change if he didn't move soon but the thought of moving seemed far from a good idea. What did he have to live for anyway? His brothers hated him and he had nowhere else to go. His brothers must likely hated him for running away, or were they happy to get rid of him? The thought of them cheerful to have him gone made tears spring to his eyes once again. Oh how he hated being this weak! Crying was for the weak, and he defiantly was not weak! Or was he? Maybe he was just a big weakling.

He sighed and closed his eyes, it was a pleasing thought to just let go and die and not have to feel pain ever again, to rid himself of any more pain. He shivered a little. No! He could not give up so easily! Even if his family didn't want him, he would keep going, even if it was just for himself.

He slowly stood up and then staggered back as his body screamed in pain and protest and his ankle started to throb again. Raph looked down at the hurt ankle and realized it was twice the size it had been last night. It had defiantly swollen over the night. He let out a low curse as he tried to put weight on it and his whole leg gave way… Slowly he looked around and seen a branch on the pine tree with very few needles. After a second of hesitation, he ripped the branch off the tree and used it as a cane as he walked out from under the tree and into the open.

Sudden light almost chased him back into the shadows of the tree as the sun shone down on the bright snow, although the sun shone brightly without a cloud in the sky, its rays gave no warmth to the red masked mutant turtle as he moved through the deep snow.

* * *

Raph kept up an O.K. pace throughout the day as he trudged through the knee deep snow, tripping sometimes when the snow became too deep for his one leg to handle. It was starting to get dark when he came to a steep slope, it looked like a slope with two levels and a small flat spot between them, kind of like a nature made stair case, after a quick debate he slowly started down the hill, but in the quickly fading light, he did not see the root of a tree sticking dangerously out and he caught his one good foot under the root, it happened so fast, one second he is standing up right, the next he is rolling down the hill at a high speed, hitting rocks and branches as he went, his shell did little to protect him. He tried to stop his rolling decline by grabbing out at branches and rocks but nothing seemed to stop him, he had half a mind to just roll down and stop at the flat part of the slope and rest there, but he soon realized that at the speed he was going, he would not stop at the skinny flat later, but go right over it. Then another realization hit him, the other part of the slope he had through just another gentle sloping hill was really a sharp drop off into darkness!

As he rolled towards the deadly drop off, he seen a branch sticking out only an inch or two away from the edge, his only hope… As he rolled close to the edge, he struck his arm out with lightning speed and grabbed the branch as he rolled over the edge of the drop off and just as he thought he was done for, he felt a lurch and looked up to see the branch was just barely holding on…

_A branch is all that is separating me from certain death…_ He thought to himself and gritted his teeth. So this _was_ it then? If he had a choice between freezing to death and falling to his death, he would have chosen the freezing one, how had he known that his hard headed decision to move on would be his last? This running away plan had done thing in his favor, but rather against it. He was starting to think this hole plan had been stupid and suicidal.

Now that his death was certainly only minutes, if not seconds away, he started to think of the reason he had ran away in the first place, and a thought that had come to him in those last fateful seconds in his room before Leo broke the door down came rushing back… What if Leo and Donnie had not been talking about him, but rather someone else? This thought had crossed his mind but he had shoved it away in his blinding hurt, but now it seemed to just repeat in his mind…

_What if Leo and Donnie hadn't meant him? What if they had been talking about someone else? What if he had miss understood? What if...—"_

His thoughts were interrupted as the branch he was holding to gave a horrible _**crack**_ and he was jetted down a few feet. He gasped, his heart raced even more and he looked back up at the branch to see it was now hanging down over the edge, a huge noticeable crack could be seen in the bark and the branch seemed to groan in protest at he held on. It would not support his weight for much longer, and even if it did, his sweaty hand would soon slip and fail with its grasp on the wood…

He sighed and then shifted a tiny bit thinking he heard a voice farther off call his name. "Leo?" He said out loud and then shook his head. Now he was imagining things. Why would Leo come looking for him, specially out this far? They never got along, and the two brothers never seen eye to eye, so why would his older brother waste his breath on looking for him?

He then felt his hand slip a little and his breath caught in his throat as his grip tightened but he drops several inches, now his hand was horribly close to the edge of the branch. Now flashes of the past came into his mind, of the happy times with his family and some not of happy times, for one was an image of him and Leo fighting that rainy night and he closed his eyes.

Then he thinks he hears another yell, this time he can make out what it is saying…

"Raphael!? Raph, where are you, please brother! Answer me!"

Raph's eyes widen, had he just imagined it? After all he had been thinking of Leo, maybe his mind was getting horribly wild now that it knew that it would soon stop for good once he died… But in his desperation to see his older brother one last time, he called out into the darkness with all the energy he had left…

"Leo!?"

There was silence and then he heard the branch snap one last time and he closed his eyes as the crack echoed around and he was falling, but just as he fell, he felt a hand close around his wrist and his eyes shot open as he jolted to a stop from falling and he looked up into the dark blue eyes of Leonardo…

Was he imagining this or was it really happening? Maybe he had already hit the bottom of the drop off and this was just a last trick of the mind, but if so, why had he not felt pain as he hit the ground and was killed? After a second, Raphael realized this was no trick of the mind, Leo was really there, leaning over the drop off, holding onto his wrist… Just as this realization hit him, Leo's voice cut into his thought.

"Raph, grab my arm with your other hand… Now, while I still can hold you!" His brother said through gritted teeth as he fought to keep hold of Raph and whatever he was holding to keep him and Raph from falling into the inky blackness…

Instead of obeying the order, he just looked up at Leo in confusion… "Why should I?" He asked in a bitter tone.

Leo stared down at him in shock and bewilderment, "Because, I don't want to loss you, Raph!" Leo said.

"Don't want to loss me?! That's cheap after what I heard you say!"

"What do you mean 'after what you heard me say'?!" Leo said, confusion shown in his dark blue eyes…

Raph growled. "You know exactly what I mean! I heard you tell Donnie you wished I would just leave the family alone! That I was a burden to you and the family!"

Silence… Then Leo gasped, having must just remembered what Raph was talking about, and then his eyes widen, "Raph, I wasn't talking about you! I was talking about 'The Shredder'! I would never say such a thing about you! Never in my life would I say such a thing!" Leo said…

"Oh ya?! Well I have a hard time believing you!" Raph snapped back.

More silence, then Leo took in a shaky breath. "Raph, I swear I would never say such a thing to you or about you! You are my brother and I love you!"

Raph went stiff at this statement, his eyes widening. _I love you!_ Never in a million years did Raph ever think he would hear that from anyone to him, let alone Leo, yes his brother did show it from time to time, but never had he said it to Raph's face. Yes, he had said it once or twice to Mikey and Donnie, but never to Raph. Just as Raph opened his mouth to reply, his hand slipped and he fell an inch or two, it was obvious Leo was losing his grip on Raph's wrist…

"Please Raphael! You have to believe me on this!" Leo begged, his dark blue eyes shone with pleading…

_I do believe you, Leo…_ Raph though and then he felt himself slip again…

"Raph, please, you have to grab my arm now! Before I lose my grip on you and I lose you forever!" Leo cried in desperation…

After a second, Raph moved his other hand up and went to grab Leo's arm, just as his other hand slipped from his brother's grasp…

In a split moment, Raph thought he had in fact waited too long to make a move and he was done for, then Leo's hand fastened around his arm once again as Leo let go of whatever he was holding onto and dived for Raph.

Leo's right hand grabbed Raph's left arm, Raph reached out with his right arm and grabbed his brother's right arm as well and Leo's other hand fastened around both of Raph's wrists. Now they were dangling above the death drop and Raph looked up at Leo.

"I'm sorry! This is all my fault, I should not have been spying on you and Donnie and I know that now! I'm sorry Leo!" He said, tears springing to his eyes. "But you have to let me go, it's no use! Save yourself and go back to Donnie and Mikey, you've been a better bigger brother to them than I ever was! It's not fair if you die too! Leo please, just let go!"

"Never!" Leo growled, his voice turning aggressive and his eyes narrowing. "I'm not letting you go and you should know I never would! And as for being a better brother to Mikey and Donnie, it doesn't matter, do you hear me?! It doesn't matter, and it never will! You have been as good of a big brother to them as much as I ever was and ever will be, at least you kept them together and holding on when I left for almost two whole years! Who kept them safe while I was gone, who kept them together and holding onto a faint hope? Not me, because I was gone, it was you Raph, you kept them holding on when I gave up and I could never thank you more for taking care of your little brothers even when I gave up on you all and let my fantasy world distract me from what was really important!"

Raph was shocked, Leo had never said such a thing to him, _ever_. He slowly looked down; letting the words he had just heard from his older brother sink in. It was only when Leo's voice came again that he looked up.

"Now, I need you to bring your legs up as if you were about to flip in midair, and when I say 'go' I need you to shove against the side of the rock wall with your feet with all your strength, now I need you to do this as soon as I yell the command because at the same time I will pull back with all my strength and hopefully it will work as I hope and pull us both back over the side of the drop off!" Leo said… "Do you understand Raph?"

Raph nodded, his face turning into a frown as he consecrates on waiting for the command…

Silence then,

"GO!"

Raph kicked out at the wall of rock with both feet, ignoring the pain of his wounded ankle as it made contact with the wall and at the same time he feels himself pulled over the side of the slope and both brothers fall back onto the snowy ground, gasping in exhaustion. They laid there for a long time, Raph was not sure how long, but all he knew is when he finally sat up and looked at Leo, dawn was breaking over the snow covered mountain side.

Leo lay on his back, his eyes closed and his chest slowly rising and falling. But as Raph sat up and the snow under him gave a gentle crunch, Leo opened his eyes and grinned at Raph.

"Next time I need a heart-attack, I know who to go to." Leo said in a laughing tone.

"Oh shut up!" Raph said but could not repress his own smile.

Leo just chuckled and sat up. "Well let's head home before we turn into popsicles."

Raph pretended to shutter at the thought. "Eeeww! That is one popsicle I will defiantly pass on!"

Leo rolled his eyes. "Oh ha-ha, very funny."

* * *

When Leo and Raph finally walked into the cabin, it was already sunset again, it had token a hole day for the two brothers to make it back the way they had come through the deep snow.

The cabin was quiet, which meant Donnie and Mikey were already asleep.

Leo helped Raph up the stairs and into the extra room; his door had been repaired and put back in by Donnie, but his window was still being fixed, as Leo had informed him already before they got back.

Leo helped Raph into the extra room and Raph didn't hesitate on collapsing on the mattress and closing his eyes. He then sat up as Leo spoke.

"You better get as much rest as you can, because tomorrow will most likely ware you out again." Leo said.

Raph knew what he meant; Donnie and Mikey would be asking him all sorts of questions. Donnie would want to check him completely of all and any wounds and Mikey would not stop bugging him about what it would have been like all alone out there.

He nodded and watched as Leo stood up and walked to the door.

"Oh, and Leo?"

His older brother stopped and looked over his shoulder at Raph. "Yes Raph?"

"Thanks." Raph said simply.

Leo smiled and nodded and with that, closed the door, leaving Raph to peaceful darkness.

Raph took his saises out of his belt and laid them on the nightstand beside the bed and then moved so that he was lying under the covers and closed his eyes, relaxing. After two whole nights and two whole days in the bitter cold, this was like heaven to him. He then opened his eyes and slowly took his mask off, lying it on the nightstand beside his saises. But instead of closing his eyes again, he rolled onto his back and looked up at the ceiling. Why had he ever thought of running away from his family? He had jumped to conclusions faster than he should have and that had led to unnecessary actions and troubles. He rolled back onto his side and closed his eyes. But before he drifted off to sleep, he made one final promise, that he would never do anything like that again, yes he would leave to have some privacy and to cool off, but never again would he try to run off, because like it or not;

_**This is where he belonged.**_

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_I have to admit, this chapter was quite fun to make. I had a ton of fun making this chapter. I think this chapter really showed the bond between Leo and Raph in a lot of ways. Well hope you injoyed this small fanfic as much as I did.


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